Clindamycin is a lincosamide antibiotic. It is usually used to treat infections with anaerobic bacteria but can also be used to treat some protozoal diseases, such as malaria. It is a common topical treatment for acne and can be useful against some methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections.

The most severe common adverse effect of clindamycin is Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea (the most frequent cause of pseudomembranous colitis).Although this side-effect occurs with almost all antibiotics, including beta-lactam antibiotics, it is classically linked to clindamycin use.

Clindamycin is marketed under various trade names, including CLINCIN, Dalacin, Clindacin, Cleocin, and Evoclin (clindamycin by itself), Duac, BenzaClin, and Clindoxyl and Acanya (in combination with benzoyl peroxide), and Ziana (with tretinoin). Clindamycin is also available as a generic drug.